Early today, two more men were murdered on the east side of the city in that semi-circle of poverty referred to as the “Fatal Crescent.” That brings the total number of murders in Rochester so far for this year to 34. This translates to not quite a murder per week, and we have nearly eleven weeks left in this year!

This number does not take into account the number of non-fatal shootings and stabbings that occur in our city. Some people like to say that those incidents were merely to “teach people a lesson,” so they weren’t intended to be fatal. Others might say that the perps simply didn’t know how to aim properly.

Rochester has long had the dubious distinction of being known as the “Murder Capital of New York State.” Other shameful distinctions are that Rochester is first in the state for infant mortality. We are seventh in the entire nation for child poverty. We have one of the worst school systems in the state.

No amount of hype from Monroe County and Citygov can cover up those ugly facts.

And it is NOT good for business!

How can we draw serious investors into our city when violence and murder are a normal fact of life here, when out city is not perceived as being safe?

While the police department and Citygov paint a brave face on the picture by saying that violence only occurs in the “Fatal Crescent,” what’s to stop it from breaking out of those neighborhoods’ boundaries into “safe” neighborhoods?

Nothing, in fact. Which is what increases flight to the suburbs, leaving behind vacant homes and buildings which in return reduces the tax base, making the city even poorer.

So, what to do?

The police are already doing their job: responding to crimes in progress or after the fact. They cannot anticipate a crime, and stopping people who look as though they are “up to something” will be branded as “profiling” and racist. And there is a correlation to poverty and race in the “Fatal Crescent.”

On the other hand, the police seek to “reassure” us that these murders and incidents of violence are “gang related.” All well and good, unless you are an innocent bystander caught in the crossfire of such an incident or witness a murder. Then the twisted morality of Thug Culture comes into play, with its horrid code of honor of “Don’t Snitch.” Or it might be a fear of retribution. Or it might simply be that most people don’t care.

That’s right. Rochester has become desensitized to murder and violence. As long as it doesn’t occur to one of our own, who cares? The cheapness of life in the “Fatal Crescent” is the result of helplessness, hopelessness and despair. Live for the moment, because there is really nothing to look forward to in the future.

Children growing up there see violence as the norm, just as open air drug trafficking is normal in the “Fatal Crescent.” And bongs are openly displayed next to the candy counters in the “Mom and Pop” stores located there.

THIS is what is frightening.

Rochester’s mayor cannot wave his law degree and magically make crime disappear. City Council cannot enact legislation to keep people from killing and maiming each other.

So, what to do?

Unfortunately, the solution lies NOT with government, but with the people themselves, because that’s where the blame lies. Parents need to keep a tighter grip on their children, and need to be sure of there whereabouts ( which is always tough when dealing with teenagers, even in the lily-white safe suburbs ). And THAT means being there for their children! Neighbors need to report their suspicions about questionable activities in their neighborhoods to the police and providing all the information they can when they have witnessed crimes. Otherwise, the police are hindered in their investigations, no matter how many officers are assigned to the case. “Don’t Snitch” and Thug Culture can only be put into the rubbish can of history by the people most affected by it, no matter how many handguns the police buy back annually, with no questions asked.

We, the people, need to have our court system enforce the law and punish violators swiftly…and harshly, if need be. And if justice is supposed to be blind, it should also NOT be “politically correct,” which has become a whole other matter in law enforcement and the court system.

Whether we like it or not, WE are the solution, NOT our paid officials. WE have let things get out of control, and it is up to us to set things straight again.

As Walt Kelly stated, in his “Pogo” comic strip: “We have met the enemy, and he is us!”

Two more murders, at least half a dozen shootings and a late night rumble outside a popular local restaurant.

It HAS been hot and humid lately, and most of Rochester’s murders and shootings occur during warmer weather.

Just like most of Rochester’s murders and shootings occur in that swath of city geography infamously referred to as “The Fatal Crescent.”

“The Fatal Crescent” comprises some of Rochester’s most poverty stricken areas, forming a semi-circle from the northeast side of the city, crossing the Genesee River and curving south through the Edgerton and Lyell-Otis neighborhoods, ending up at Bull’s Head in the southwest.

When people hear that there has been a murder or a shooting in Rochester, they invariably ask “Where?” When told that it occurred in one of the neighborhoods that make up “The Fatal Crescent,” they merely reply “Of course,” and go on their way. Since violent crime occurs on such a regular basis in those neighborhoods, it is taken for granted that that’s where violence WILL occur, where it SHOULD occur! We have become so desensitized to violence in those areas that even the D&C gives reports of shootings and murders only perfunctory coverage.

Unless it is a spectacular episode of violence, with several victims at one address. THAT might be deemed newsworthy enough to hold the attention span of readers for more than just a few minutes and get more of a write-up. Or if violence occurs in ordinarily less violent neighborhoods. That’s when people can’t believe it happened THERE. Things like that are supposed to happen only in “The Fatal Crescent.”

Unfortunately, large areas of Rochester where murder and violence is the norm is bad for business. It’s rather hard to sell the benefits of locating a company here or convincing people to move back into the city to the sound of gunshots. Although ”smarter” criminals attempt to cover the sound of gunshots with firecrackers. Most people have now become accustomed to such attempted deceptions!

So, what to do?

Rochester’s Police Department frequently makes the statement that most of the violence in those areas of town is gang related. This is done to reassure us that, unless we are somehow involved in gang activity, we have nothing to fear. Unless we are innocent bystanders caught in the crossfire of gang related activity and become victims ourselves.

Furthermore, the abject poverty in those areas adds to the problem. The days of low to moderate skilled jobs in huge industrial compounds that paid decent, living wages has disappeared with the changes in technology. The long, slow death of the Kodak Empire that was a mainstay of Rochester’s economy is a testimony to that fact. That Citygov and the County frequently announce the creation of new jobs in Rochester that will cut unemployment ( they never DARE talk about underemployment ) has proven to be less than encouraging: those much applauded jobs are generally of the minimum wage variety! Worse, the exploits of COMIDA in bringing such low paying jobs into the area and the city comes at the cost of our tax base: those new businesses get a tax break on their property taxes, and the rest of us get to pick up the slack.

Let’s add to that the dismal failure of our public education system in Rochester. There is a high truancy rate and a much less than 50% graduation rate in the city schools. City Council President Lovely Warren stated on April 30, 2010 that of the students who actually graduate from the city schools and go on to MCC, HALF of them need remedial reading and writing courses. In short, the school system that graduated them for whatever reasons did not make them functionally literate enough to successfully transition into college.

And even if they were well educated ( by our standards, whatever they are ), what have they been educated for? Minimum wage jobs, many of which are located beyond the city limits, many of which are not exactly on a busline.

Within “The Fatal Crescent,” thug culture prevails ( hence the Police Department’s repeated references to “gang-related activity” ). The “Prime Directive” of thug culture is “Don’t snitch.” Many people in those neighborhoods “don’t snitch” when they have information about crime or criminal activity. Whether it is out of loyalty to the twisted code of honor for “don’t snitch” or from fear of retribution is anyone’s guess.

And another part of thug culture is the cheapness of life. Since they haven’t got anything to look forward to anyway, the only thing that matters is NOW. And that means instant gratification.

So, what to do?

Rochester Police Chief Shepard announced some weeks ago that they would be concentrating more police in those areas of the city where crime is more prevalent that others. This was a logical move. Only it bothered the people living there as it made them feel singled out. It bothered liberals not living in those areas, who claimed that we were living in a police state and are being subjected to random frisking and “profiling.” It bothered people living in neighborhoods that bordered “The Fatal Crescent,” because it seemed as though the police were abandoning them.

Of course, had the police chief NOT undertaken such steps, the people in “The Fatal Crescent” and their liberal, usually white “allies” not living there, could complain that the Rochester Police Department DIDN’T care about them and is racist ( never mind the fact that our chief of police is black ).

Hiring more “minority” police officers has been bandied about for years. The idea is that they could be deployed to the neighborhoods of “The Fatal Crescent,” where the majority of people ARE minorities, because they could “talk to them.” Like they were a different species.

The problem is that a good many people from “The Fatal Crescent” have criminal backgrounds ( thug culture again ) that preclude their becoming police officers. The minorities being hired for the Rochester Police Department are coming from the suburbs, NOT from the city! Presumably, they will still be able to “talk” to the people in those neighborhoods.

Unfortunately, it doesn’t matter if a police officer’s skin is black, white, yellow or brown. Once they don a uniform, they become “blue,” an entirely different species.

So, what to do?

Anti-gun people want to increase restrictions on gun-ownership. They argue that by making it more difficult to get a gun, fewer people on the street will be able to get them and use them to threaten or kill people. They fail to realize that the police themselves usually say that most of the guns used by criminals were obtained illegally, usually by stealing them.

Pro-gun people immediately point that fact out, and complain that the current regulations are too stringent. Most pro-gun people usually have obtained their pistols legally. It is usually from them that the criminals steal their guns! Most pistol owners have more than one and foolishly tell everyone they know about them, how many they have and where they are concealed. A pistol concealed in a Bible-cover in the glove compartment of a car isn’t going to be overlooked by experienced thieves or car-jackers. It seems almost sacrilegious, anyway, as well as being a bit stupid.

At any rate, a complete ban on pistols IS unconstitutional!

So, what to do?

Well, nothing, really.

The police ARE doing their job, which is to respond to crimes, whether in progress or those that have occurred. Their job is NOT to anticipate a crime, though they will respond to tips that something fishy is going on.

It is we who are failing to do our job, to report to the police everything we know about crimes and criminals. Silence only helps criminals.

It is we who are failing to do our job, to demand that the court system enforce the law to the fullest extent, not to contemporary fads or political correctness. And that means putting criminals away from the society that they have preyed upon.

What to do?

We are our brothers’ keepers. Therein lies our personal and collective safety. Otherwise, who will protect us when violence spreads like cancer throughout the city and into the nice, clean white suburbs?

Public safety IS a major concern in the City of Rochester. For years, we had the reputation of being the murder capital of New York, with the highest number of murders per capita of any city in the state. It’s hard to attract new residents and businesses to Rochester if people fear for their safety, which is why those services in the police and fire departments should always be a priority and not be subject to cheese-paring budgetary concerns.

Rochester’s current Chief of Police, James Sheppard, has been assuring us over the last few months that Rochester is safer than it has been for years. Known for infectious and impish grin when speaking to the public, Chief Sheppard also refers to homicides in a unique way: “When bodies drop.”

Most Rochesterians weren’t exactly convinced by Sheppard’s statements that the city is indeed safer. Especially with the recent spike in shootings and murders! Bodies were continuing to drop!

Two weeks ago, Sheppard initiated his “Operation Cooldown” plan, to concentrate greater police presence in those areas of the city where crime is more prevalent than others. THAT makes some sense, except that the people living in those areas might feel, well, more oppressed by that police presence than otherwise. Other areas of the city might feel that they aren’t getting their “fair share” of police protection.

Last Friday, the crime statistics for the first six months of this year came out. They bore out what most Rochesterians already knew, thanks to the D&C and the television news media: violent crime was up over last year in the areas of murder, shootings and rapes. Moreover, up until that point, arrests had been made in only two of Rochester’s murders.

Almost simultaneously, to underscore the release of these figures, yet another shooting took place on Rochester’s northeast side, on Delamaine Drive. One man was killed and another man went into emergency surgery in the hospital.

Karma IS implacable!

Of course, Police Chief Sheppard held another news conference, covered on YNN and the other television news channels. His standard grin was missing, but he still referred to homicides as “when bodies drop.”

Deputy Chief Mike Wood stated that much of the crime in that area of the city was “gang related,” and that arrests had been made in relation to them.I suppose that this was meant to reassure the rest of us. It implies that only gang bangers are involved in the violence, and that they are only killing each other. Perhaps it meant that they deserve it. And that the rest of the law abiding society shouldn’t be overly concerned. Unless, of course, when innocent bystanders get caught in the crossfire of “gang related” incidents.

There was also the mention of “Don’t snitch” hindering criminal investigations.

That’s true enough; the police can’t do their jobs to solve crimes unless witnesses are willing to come forth and provide the police with the information they need to get violent individuals off of the streets. But then, it might be the fear of retaliation that convinces people to remain silent, not out of any misplaced loyalty to criminals.

Yet, within 24 hours, an arrest had been made in the Delamaine Drive shootings!

Jermaine Johnston: his random crime spree was unrelated to the gang activity the police say is prevalent on Rochester's northeast side.

Jermaine Johnston was charged with the murder and attempted murder of the men he shot; he is also being investigated for another shooting and robberies during his brief crime spree. The police are regarding Johnston as a “lone wolf operative,” whose crimes were random and unconnected with gang activity.

Moreover, it was the law abiding citizenry that flooded the police department with information that led to Johnston’s arrest! The average men and women who make up the vast majority of Rochester’s population had enough of “bodies dropping.” Even Police Chief Sheppard couldn’t say that his “Operation Cooldown” had a real effect in this instance.

If Johnston expected to be saved by the “Don’t snitch” mentality, he was sadly mistaken.

And the lesson to be learned by this?

Simple. If we want the police to solve crimes and get criminals off of the streets, we had better work with them. We need to give them whatever information we have in order to make our streets safer. “Don’t snitch” aids only the criminals; it doesn’t really protect law abiding people. We are, indeed, our brothers’ keepers. And it will benefit our safety as individuals as well.

Otherwise, bodies will continue to drop. And then next one might be yours.

The job of the Rochester Police Department: to protect us from ourselves!

Western New York winters seem to depress a lot of residents. People complain about the cold, the snow and how long the winters are. Frequently, people say that if they could, they’d move south, where the weather is warmer.

Then summer comes.

People then complain about the heat and humidity!

Oh, well. There’s just no pleasing some people.

One of the nastier side effects of summer weather in Rochester is that crime rates go up. This is probably because warmer weather is conducive to being outdoors, rather than being cooped up because of the wind, the cold and the snow.

On the other hand, Rochester’s chief of police James Sheppard continually says that violent crime rates in the city are down. Never mind the fact that there have been a spate of murders occurring in Rochester as of late: last night, a 16 year-old boy was mudered on the east side of the city. How high is the tally of murders now?

And summer has just started!

We ought not forget that Rochester had been recently hailed as the “murder capital” of New York State. This is not good for business, despite Sheppard’s assurances that violent crime is down from previous years.

Of course, the far right screams that the spike in murders occurs because gun laws are too tough. They are referring to pistols, easily concealed and the frequent weapon of choice for criminals. If such laws were “too tough,” criminals wouldn’t have such apparently easy access to guns.

But then, there is something almost Freudian about the gun toters’ arguments, although they do like to wrap them up in the constitutional right to bear arms.

So, where does that leave the police?

Frankly, the police force cannot be everywhere all of the time. Rochester simply does not have the money to have two or three beat cops walking every block in the city at all hours of the day and night. Even if the police concentrated largely in areas where high rates of crime and shootings are prevalent, we still don’t have the manpower to do it. And other neighborhoods would feel as though they are being ignored.

So people complain about poor response times on the part of the police. This goes back to the time the precinct system was eliminated when the current lieutenant governor was Rochester’s chief of police. The east-west division of Rochester’s police department was a one-time only money saving ploy when the city still had money. It “saved” less than a million bucks, but cost far more in neighborhood morale and the feeling of security. Some things cannot be measured by money.

That being said, what are the police to do?

While the police department can be aware of areas in the city where there is a high occurrence of crime, they cannot respond until there is an actual incident. When they do respond to a crime, people complain that they didn’t get there soon enough, that they have mishandled the investigation and ask what are they going to do about it in the future to prevent the occurrence of such incidents.

Well, the police could frisk everyone walking the streets as a preventative action, but then they would be held up to charges of “profiling.”

Every citizen has the legal right to be out and about in public at any time of the day and be unmolested, whether it be by the police department or by private individuals.

There’s the rub: it’s those private individuals ( the criminals ) who are pushing the envelope, and the police have to walk a torturous tightrope protecting us from them!

Add to that the prevailing attitude of “Don’t Snitch” among people who know something about the crimes in this city ( at the same time those same people complain that the police “aren’t doing anything” to solve crimes ), and the police department’s hands become even more tied.

Oh, well. What it really boils down to is that the job of our police department is to protect us from people who choose to do us harm. Since they can’t prevent criminal acts from occurring, they must speedily investigate, catch and bring the wrongdoers to justice. For that to occur, they need our help. “Don’t Snitch” merely helps the criminals. The maxim qui tacet consentivet ( “silence gives consent” ) comes to mind here. People who know something about the crime, and refuse to inform the police, are consenting to the crime having taken place. They have, in effect, become accessories after the fact in the crime by witholding evidence. And the cycle continues.

But summer is here, the weather is warm, the festivals occur every weekend and they are all well-attended. Fall and colder weather will be coming in a few months, and the crime rate should drop again.

And people complain about the winter! It’s the safest time of the year!

Maplewood prides itself on being a relatively crime-free neighborhood in Rochester, which was one of the reasons we chose to move here 15 years ago. Unfortunately, the last few years have seen an upsurge of crime and violence here, which is not comforted by the assurances of Chris Tillett, current president of the Maplewood Neighborhood Association, that studies have shown the 10th ward to be one of the safest places in Rochester. Murders and shootings have become a relatively common occurrence here now. Many neighborhood celebrities claim that crime is “spilling over” from its “natural home,” the 14621 neighborhood, just across the river, where three people were shot in a Portland Avenue barbershop tonight.

Today, a 30 year-old school bus driver was gunned down at 6 AM in a driveway on Augustine Street. It was Rochester’s second murder of the year. That was particularly unnerving to me, as the location is less than 1000 feet from my own home. In fact, it is on the route I take when walking my dog twice a day. And it occurred just half an hour earlier than we usually pass by that house.

I learned of the murder when we were walking this morning: Augustine Street was cordoned off between Lucky and Dove Streets, and there were police cars everywhere, directing traffic away from the crime scene. School buses had to be rerouted, and children and parents had to be directed to Birr Street, where the school buses were waiting for them. Parents were busily shrieking on their cell-phones that someone in the neighborhood had been killed; children seemed bewildered by the change in their routines. So was my dog; she had been accustomed to come down Augustine Street to Dove Street, where we would turn to come home.

The police have claimed that this is not a “random killing,” that the victim knew his murderer and was arguing with him in his driveway this morning. Those murders are easier to solve, unlike stranger-to-stranger killings ( “random murders” ), where the victim and murderer don’t know each other, and were probably robberies or drug deals gone bad. Those tend to be more frightening.

By the time I got to work, everybody was buzzing about the murder.

“Isn’t that near where you live,” my co-workers asked. “How can you live in an unsafe neighborhood?”

It got worse later in the day, when yet another shooting occurred on Rand Street, less than a mile north of the murder on Augustine Street. My co-workers commented on this as well.

For years, I have been hyping Maplewood as a great place to live, that it is coming back and planning to re-invent itself. These incidents leave me with egg on my face.

To be sure, and I’ve said this before, there is nothing anybody can do to stop people who want to kill, maim and rob others. The most we can hope for is the perps get caught after the fact, and get as stiff a sentence as the judge can pronounce. And learn to protect ourselves.

Apart from that, there’s very little we, as a neighborhood or a city can do.

The MNA has been hyping PAC-TAC ( Police And Citizens Together Against Crime ) as a method to curtail violence, and looking to get 50 volunteers for this area. But who is going to be walking the streets of Maplewood at all hours of the day and night? The Augustine Street murder happened at 6 AM; would PAC-TACers be “patrolling” then? Of course not.

Beefing up the police force to have every street in “problem areas” patrolled 24-7-365? The costs for that would be monumental, and Maplewood wouldn’t want to be designated a “problem area” anyway. It’s bad for business.

Education? Kindness? Fear of God? That hasn’t worked so far.

And stiffer sentences to jails refitted to become ghastly Hell-holes can only take effect after the fact.

So, what’s the answer? Or is there an answer? Or do we simply give up and move out of Rochester to some “gated community” with strict rules and regulations as to who can get past the sentries, and what time one can receive visitors?

On this one, we can’t blame the mayor or the chief of police.

And fear is becoming an established part of living these days, even in the suburbs.

Roderick Scott was acquitted yesterday for shooting teenager Chris Cervini, which resulted in the kid’s death. This case stirred up a lot of passions about crime, fear, race, lack of parental supervision and location. The shooting occurred in the nice, white, clean suburbs. Everyone usually says “of course,” or “what do you expect” if shootings and deaths occur in Rochester; it’s not supposed to happen in Greece.

But lots of violent crimes ARE occurring in the suburbs these days, AND they are making the news media. Just look at the convictions of Garcia and where the murders he committed took place.

People blame teenaged crime in the city on absentee fathers and otherwise unconcerned mothers. What about suburban parents, whose kids drink, use drugs and roam the streets late at night ( or early in the morning ) under the cover of darkness, looking for “open” cars to steal cigarettes ( yeah, sure )? Where were they?

And the kids themselves? Already known troublemakers, while Mr. Scott had an exemplary background.

I sincerely believe that had Mr. Scott been a white man, in the nice, white clean suburbs, and the three kids had been products of Rochester’s ghettoes, the case would already have been over, if it would ever have gotten to court. It was the fact that the colors had been reversed, the black suburban man and three white teenaged thugs, that kept the interest in this case going. Had they all been black, had the shooting occurred in Rochester, people would have said “of course,” and probably not thought much more on the matter. Had they all been white, and the crime occurred where it did, people might have been shocked, but, given the backgrounds of the involved individuals, soon would have lost interest, too.

Mr. Scott’s defense was that he felt fear.

Too many people pooh-pooh that statement. In Rochester, we have seen three cops shot at and seriously injured by young adults and a young teenager. We have seen a teenager on trial for invading a home and a business and murdering four people. We have seen a teenager acquitted of one murder and, six weeks later, murdering a store owner on North Street ( for which he was convicted; better late than never ). We see drive by shootings and murders involving teenagers on our streets almost weekly.

Mr. Scott had every reason to be afraid of teenagers at three in the morning.

Teenagers can be every bit as deadly as adults. They prove it regularly in Rochester. Nobody knows if they are packing a stolen weapon, or one “borrowed” from their parents ( just like Cervini and company “borrowed” the gin that they were drinking before they went out roaming the streets. It’s odd that they didn’t “borrow” some cigarettes from their parents ). But do we allow them to roam in packs, looking for trouble and hoping that they leave us alone?

Mr. Scott responded tragically to the culture of violence and fear that has now become prevalent in our society and our area. I’m sorry a teenager died as a result; so is Mr. Scott. And my reply to the parents, when they claim their child was murdered, is a simple one, and asked of black parents in Rochester all the time: where were you?

Josef Stalin, dead dictator of the now defunct Soviet Union, once said that one death was a tragedy; a million are merely a statistic. Cold, callous and unfortunately only too true.

It’s getting that way in Rochester. People are getting used to the number of shootings, stabbings and murders that occur here. After a bit of a slump, they’re picking up again. Politicians, neighborhood celebrities and storefront ministers talk about it and lead candle-light vigils. Everyone keeps on talking about the cheapness of life, expecting that by their words alone that people will stop injuring or killing others.

That hasn’t worked.

Most people are taken amiss for a few minutes, and then go on with their lives. They’re not really shocked anymore. Multiple shootings, stabbings and murders become a statistic, and few people are bothered by statistics.

We are assured by the police that most of the killings and shootings might be gang-related; that those of us who do not belong to gangs involved in turf warfare are somehow “safe.” This allows us to be not overly concerned, unless the violence occurs on our own doorsteps.

The truly frightened people look to leave the city in the mistaken belief that they will be safer elsewhere, that people are somehow “better” in the suburbs. The increase in crime and murder there might suggest that in a few years’ time it will continue to grow like a cancer unchecked. But people leave the city to the tune of 2,000 a year, not as massive an exodus as occurred in the decade after the riots of 1964, but still a high number.

And those of us who remain are becoming increasingly cynical over such matters. With incidents happening every day, it’s easy to become hardened.

And just tonight, yet another young man was shot on the southwest side. After someone was murdered today. But most people really aren’t up in arms about it, because what can anybody really do about them? Nothing, really, as the police and mayor discovered when taking pride in their supposed “20% drop in crime, ” just before the latest batches of shootings, stabbings and murders began.

Contributors

Click on a blogger to see just their posts.

Rich Gardner has been writing about the history, culture and waterways of Upstate New York for years. His articles have appeared in U.S. and Canadian publications, and one book, Learning to Walk. He is an alumnus of Brighton High School and SUNY Geneseo. He operates Upstate Resume & Writing Service in Brighton and recently moved to Corn Hill, where he is already involved in community projects. "I enjoy the 'Aha!' moments of learning new things, conceptual and literal. City living is a great teacher."

Ken Warner grew up in Brockport and first experienced Rochester as a messenger boy for a law firm in Midtown Tower. He recently moved downtown into a loft on the 13th floor of the Temple Building with a view of the Liberty Poll and works in the Powers Building overlooking Rochester’s four corners as Executive Director for UNICON, an organization devoted to bringing economic development to the community. He hopes to use his Rochester Blog to share his observations from these unique views of downtown.